From This Moment On - By Debbi Rawlins Page 0,36

lost.

Nikki pushed on his arm, trying to look for herself. He relaxed his hold and she broke away. The sensible side of his brain told him it was for the best. His body strongly disagreed.

He turned to the clock, so worked up inside that he had to squint to focus. No way that much time had gone by since he’d come inside. He cut off a curse at the last second. Cole wanted to meet him in the east barn, and Trace had agreed to be there five minutes ago.

“What’s wrong?” Nikki touched his arm, then quickly withdrew.

She shouldn’t have to worry about a casual touch, that was the kind of thing he’d been trying to avoid. If he hadn’t pushed, she might not have given it a second thought. He lightly squeezed her shoulder, then went to the window and looked outside for Cole. If he were on time, he’d be waiting at the entrance.

“I forgot I was supposed to meet Cole. I’ll come look for you when I’m done and we can talk about later.” When he saw his brother standing outside the stable talking to Karina, Trace grinned. He knew by the look on Cole’s face he’d been caught off guard and would do anything to escape. That gave Trace a couple more minutes with Nikki.

She joined him at the window, and the instant she spotted them she broke out in a huge smile.

“What’s that for?”

“Nothing.”

“Yeah, sure looks like nothing.” It reminded him to ask her about the other night. “You and Karina, at the Watering Hole, what were you laughing about?”

She turned away, shaking her head. “I can’t tell you. I promised.”

“Well, that’s a fine thing.” He caught her arm, spun her back to face him. “You trust her more than you do me?”

“You want me to break a promise?”

Hard to argue when she put it that way. “Give me a hint. Did it have anything to do with what I told her about you and me?”

Nikki lost the smile. “What did you say?”

Trace cringed. He should’ve thought before putting himself on the hot seat. “She asked if you were my girlfriend and I sorta said I was working on it.”

“Sorta said?”

“Yeah, okay, I said it, but it was in self-defense...not to mention your fault.”

She folded her arms across her chest. “I can’t wait to hear this.”

“I was getting a group ready for a ride and thinking about us kissing and...well...I might’ve looked a little sappy when I helped Karina into the saddle and I worried she’d gotten the wrong idea.”

“Oh.” Nikki’s lips again curved into a smile, but a strange one. “What she told me had nothing to do with that.”

Well, hell, that didn’t tell him squat. “I didn’t know you two were so chummy.”

“That was the first time we’d really talked.” She lifted a shoulder. “I like her.” She moved closer, lowering her voice to a teasing whisper. “If you can’t keep your mind on work, then no more getting down and dirty.”

“We haven’t even gotten dusty yet.” Trace tried to sneak an arm around her waist but she danced out of reach. “Come on now, I only have a minute before I have to go save Cole.”

Nikki suddenly got serious. “What if Karina repeats what you told her and it spreads?”

“About me working on you?” He dismissed it with a shrug. “No one will think anything of it. You’re in the clear, and people will figure that’s just me being me.”

Regret hit him instantly. Even before her expression fell and her body tensed. A lot of people considered him a player, and Nikki didn’t have evidence to the contrary. He needed to explain....

Hilda reentered the kitchen.

Too late. He had to let it go for now. At least he still had later when they could talk in private. “I gotta go get Cole,” he said, looking directly at Nikki. “I’ll see you soon. Same time?”

She hesitated, and he tried to hold her gaze, tried to silently communicate that he needed to see her. But he knew he’d lost her the second her lips lifted in a faint smile. “Another day, okay?”

Dammit. He glanced at Hilda. She’d busied herself with stirring a pot on the stove, but she could still hear. Saying anything more would only make Nikki uncomfortable. He let out a frustrated sigh and headed for the door. Maybe he had been that guy, but meeting Nikki had changed his ways. He just wished he could convince her of that.

9

“NIKKI?”

She turned at Sadie’s